1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a vehicle allocation processing apparatus which performs an allocation processing for allocating vehicles to customers in accordance with requests from the customers, and a system, method, and program thereof, and a recording medium which records the program.
2. Description of Related Art
A known conventional vehicle allocation processing to respond to a request for allocation and delivery of a vehicle such as a taxi or the like is as follows.
For example, a customer requests allocation of a taxi from a taxi company on the phone. An operator in the taxi company who receives the request for taxi allocation sends information given by the customer (about the customer's current position, destination, name, phone number, etc.) by wireless transmission to all taxies owned by the company. The operator then waits for a response from each taxi. If a response is given from any taxi, the operator of the taxi company informs the customer of the vehicle number of the taxi, a waiting period until arrival at the current position, and the like, and then carries out a taxi allocation processing.
In another known taxi allocation system, an allocation processing is carried out via the Internet (for example, Jpn. Pat. Laid-Open Publication No. 2002-342424, FIG. 2). In this taxi allocation system, customers input conditions of desired services (e.g., charges, delivery time, and the like) through their own mobile terminals. Taxi allocation request information including conditions of a service is transmitted to a taxi allocation server via the Internet from the mobile terminal. The taxi allocation server searches for a taxi which satisfies the conditions of the desired service according to the taxi allocation request information received. Then, communication terminals of taxies which are thus sought through the search are informed of the order from the customer via the Internet. The drivers of these taxies send information setting a charge, delivery time, and the like to the taxi allocation server from the communication terminals via the Internet, to accept the order. The taxi allocation server sends listed information including taxi information concerning the taxies which can accept the order and the conditions of services, to the customer's mobile terminal via the Internet. The customer sees the listed information on the mobile terminal, selects a desired taxi depending on the conditions of services (a charge, delivery time, and the like), and sends the selection to the taxi allocation server. Then, the taxi allocation server informs the communication terminal of the selected taxi of a successful acceptance, and a taxi allocation processing is carried out.
However, the allocation processing using the phone and the wireless transmission cannot properly manage allocated taxies, and therefore, cannot respond appropriately to customers' requests. For example, this causes a problem of lowered efficiency in allocating taxis.
Also, in the invention described in the foregoing publication, the server manages information concerning taxies in advance, and searches for taxis as requested from customers, based on the information managed. This prior art may hence be considered to be able to respond appropriately to demands from customers and to increase the efficiency in allocating taxies, compared with the above-described taxi allocation processing using the phone and wireless transmission. However, this server has to wait for responses from taxies in executing the taxi allocation processing. This causes problems, for example, in that rapid responses are impossible and the taxi allocation efficiency cannot be increased sufficiently.